Pouring spout structure for cartons



` H. F. PHKILLlPs 2,760,708

POURING SPOUT STRUCTURE FOR CARTONS Filed May 24, 1952 INVENTOR. #EA/RrE ,DH/MP5 United States Patent 2,760,708 roURING sPoUT STRUCTURE FonCARToNs Henry F. Phillips, Oakland, Calif., assignor, by direct andmesne assignments, to Floseal Corporation, a corporation of DelawareApplication May 24, 1952, Serial No. 289,838

2 Claims. (Cl. 229-17) This invention relates to pouring spout structurein cartons and has for one of its objects the provision `of a pouringspout that is readily movable from a position in which the `dispensingspout is closed, to fully open pouring position and vice versa, andwhich spout will stay in said pouring position without the necessity forernploying locking notches and tabs or the equivalent.

Another object of the invention is the provision of a spout in a carton,which spout is readily movable from a position in which the dispensingopening is closed toward fully open position 'at any desired degree ofextension of the spout from said opening to enable the user to controlthe rate of ow of material from said carton.

A still further object of the invention is the provision of pouringspout structure in a carton that en'ables the user to easily withdrawthe spout from the dispensing opening that is normally covered by thespout, without injury to the carton or spout.

Another object of the invention is the provision of a way of forming acarton from cardboard in which a glue flap and one of the carton wallsare formed to cooperate for forming pouring spout structure so thatfreedom of the spout for opening land for closing Will'be insured at nonoticeable added expense to the carton, and at the same time a secureseal of the dispensing opening willbe effected when the lspout isclosed.

In explanation of the foregoing objects, heretofore in the formation ofpouring spouts, it has been customary to crease the spout carrying layerof the material along the folding line or lines to facilitate bending,and Iin order to provide a closure for the dispensing opening from whichthe spout is drawn, such closure usually is secured to the spout formovement therewith.

The diiculty with this structure has been that the initial opening ofthe spout has heretofore required so much force that the closure layerin many instanceshas been torn or pulled away from the spout, thusmaking it impossible to withdraw the spout, and once the spout is pulledto open position, assuming the `withdrawal has been effected withoutinjury to the spout, the spout will automatically spring back to almostclosed position due to the tension in the material along the fold lines.

By the present structure, and whether the lspout is of the double wingtype with `a ilat bottom or is of V-sh=aped cross sectional contour, thewithdrawal of the spout is made much easier than in prior structures,and the spout will lstay open when released, orwill stayin any desireddegree of extension from the carton.

Also, one of the factors that has heretofore contributed materially tothe diiculty of initially moving the pouring spout to pouring positionhas been the problem of gluing the pouring spout to the closure yfor thedispensing opening with sufficient accuracy to make a good bond and yetnot to glue the spout to an adjoining fixed part of the container. Ifthe bond is not over a 'suihcient area the closure (which usually pullsthe spout with it) is readily pulled away from the spout rendering itdillicult, if not impossible, to withdraw the spout, .and if the.Patented Aug. 28, 1956 spout is accidentally :glued to a fixed part ofthe container wall, `the saine thing occurs.

With the present invention, provision is made to insure -a proper andextremely accurate gluing together of localized parts yof the spoutstructure without regard to precision in ithe glue applicator device,and 'at no noticeable added expense. In other words, no exact spottingof thel 'glue isrequired. 1 -When the spout is on a glue tlapof thefcontainer, .the carton may be printed in the conventional .manner-andthen the glue may be applied to the glue `flap Ithat carries thespout without regard to the spout, Iand after the glue flap is glued inthe usual manner lto the carton blank `to form the carton, the spoutwill stick only in' those exact places Where it must stick in ordertomake ythe A)spout structure operative.

Another `objectnof'tbe:invention is the provision of a substantiallyV-Sh'aped pouring spout' in a side wall of a carton, and which structureydoes not weaken the side wall and the carton vcan be `filled withmaterial to substantially the top of thec'arton, thus effecting asubstantial saving inthe material ofthe carton over those structures.that Jmake .provision `for cutting out a dispensing opening along theupper edge-of the carton.

The .principal objection" to V-shaped pouring spouts has beenfltheydiiiiculty in lopening them land in keeping them openy without usingsome '-kind of a notch in the spout for engaging a part of the carton ator adjacent to the dispensing opening.` This has already been mentionedas being an'objection that is found to be general, even where the doubleAwing spouts having a at bottom :are used, but it fis 'particularlynoticeable in spouts that are VV-shaped in cross section and that arenot corner spouts, 'but that are spaced vfrom 'the corners of thecarton, and that `are in aside wall.

lfWiththe presentinvention provision is mlade for a spout ctv-shapedycross section to be in a side wall of the carton 'and spaced below the-top of the latter Iand whichl spout 4doesnot weaken lthe carton Aand iseasily and quickly moved lto and from'pouring position and in .saidstructure provision is made for securely and directly engaging'the spoutitself in the initial and subsequent operations of moving it to pouringposition, thereby completely--r'avoiding the possibility lof renderingthe 4spout inaccessible for ywithdrawal by Iaccidental mutilation of thespout structure.

Other objects Iand advantageswill appear in the description and inthedrawings.

In the drawings, Fig. 'l is a plan view of a blank from which a cartonhaving the present pouring spout is `adapted to be formed. vThe sideshown is the side that will be the inside of the finished carton.

Fig. 2 is an enlarged, fragmentary elevational view of the outer layerof a side wall of the carton, showing the closure yto which lthe spoutis adapted to be secured for movement with Ithe spout.

Fig. 3 is an enlargedfragtnentary elevational view of the spout `towhichv the tab `of Fig. 2 is attached, the spout `beingjshown ,in theposition in which `it would normally be below the closureof Fig. r2.

Fig. 4 is an .enlarged fragmentary elevational view of the closureandspout of Figs. .2, 3 in assembled relation when the `ends oftheblankof Fig. 1 are folded on each other with ktheclosure -of Fig.Zloutermost.

`Fig. `5 `is a `fragmerlt'ar-y elevational .view of the spout of Fig. 4in substantially'fully open pouring position.

Fig. 6 .is a sectional view taken along line 6-6 of Fig. 5.

Fig. 47 is an enlarged .eleva-tional view of the spout structure-:asvseen from the opposite side of the blank shown iniiig. 3. I

Figs. :8, ',Qarevievvsthat are similar to that `of Pig. 3,

f 2,760,7oa

but respectively showing slight modifications ofthe form I shown in Fig.3, andA Fig. 10 shows a slightly modified form of the structure of Fig.3.

ln Fig. l the blank forforming the carton'will beseen to comprise fourspaced parallel folding creases 1,'2, 3, and 4 starting fromthe rightside as seen in said ligure. The side walls of the carton to be formedare designated 5, 6, 7, 8 starting from the right and said creases formthe junctures between said side walls. Folding flaps 9 at the upper endsof said .side walls are adapted to be folded one on the other in`the'usual manner to provide the closed upper end of the nished carton,and `folding ilaps 16 at the lower endsof .said side wallsare adapted tobe similarly folded to, form the bottom wall.V .Folding crease 11denesthe junctures between the folding aps 9 and the side walls, whilefolding crease 12 delines the junctures between aps 10 and said sidewalls.

In extension of the side wall 8 andintegral therewith is an extension-orglueiilapA 13, its juncture with side wall 8 being defined by thefolding crease.4,yand when the carton is formed said extensionunderliesthe side wall that is at the other end 'of the blank..`

Preferably, the upper end 14 of glue ap 13 is of substantially the samewidthas wall .5, `and below said upper end the glue ap is cut away sothat only anarrow strip 15 extends along crease 4. Tabs 16, 17extending` above and below creases 11, 12 from said glue ap 13 andadjacent to the ends of crease 4 will be folded over in lapping relationto the other folding aps 9, when the carton is formed. Y

As has already been mentioned, Fig. -l shows the blank from the sidethat will bethe inside of the carton when the latter is formed. Informing the carton the side wall 5 and glue flap 13`will be broughttoward the viewer and placed in lapping relation to each other with glueap 13 underlying wall 5 so as to provide an `inside wall and with glueflap 13 and said wall 5v in opposed relation to wall 7. The glue flap 13is to be. glued to wall 5 along strip 15 and at the upper end 14 as willlater be explained more in detail.

In Figs. 2, 3, the wall 5 and the upper end 14 of glue flap 13 are shownin the positions they would occupy when the wall 5 and glue flap 13 arein said lapping relation, except that they are shown separate lfrom eachother. Fig. 4 shows them together.

The outside wall 5 is formed to provide a generally triangular,sector-shaped portion 19, the .straight radial edges 20, 21 of whichextend divergently upwardly at an acute angle from meeting relationship.at their lower ends, while the upper edge 22 extends arcuately about apoint disposed at the meeting ends of edges 20, 21 as a center. K

The edges 21, 22 are cut through the wall 5 v except at tack point 23that is along edge 21 close to the upper end of the latter. Y I

The marginal portion of the wall Salong the edge 22 above portion 19,and adjacent to the upper end of edge 21 is formed 'with a recess 24that opens to edge 22. The length of this recess linearly of edge 22,anditsV depth are suicient to provide for access of the nail of a finger tothe upper edge of portion 19 and also the portion of the spout that isadapted to underlie said part 19.l This will be described more in detaillater on.

Edge of portion 19 is defined Vbyafolding crease or' score 20. Thus uponpulling the part 19 outwardly of wall 5 by means of a nger'engaging 'thespout close to the tacking section 23, the portion 19 will readily Abebroken and it will swing outwardly'relativevto wall 5 about crease 20.

The upper end 14 of glue flap 13 (which end will be generally called theextension in referring to it hereafter unless specically referred to asthe upper end thereof or as the inside wall) is formed with acontinuousline of severance that defines the outline `of a flat spout-formingclosure generally designated 25 having outer and inner wings 26, 27 thatare bendable along a row of slots or fold line 28 that divides theclosure spout into said wings that, in turn, will form the two sides ofthe generally V-shaped spout shown in Figs. 5, 6. Rows of slots 28, 29dene two edges of the sectorshaped generally triangular inner wing 27,which rows are substantially coincident with the edges 21, 20respectively of the triangular portion 19 in wall 5, except that the row28 may be just a trie offset toward row V29 with respect to the edge 21.k f

Thearcuately extending free edgef30that extendsbe tween the upperends'of row 28,29y is developed about a slightly shorter radius thanedge 22 of portion 19, therefore marginal portion 33 (Fig-5) alongedge30 will be overlapped by. the marginal portion 34 along edge 22 (Fig.4). The portion 19 and wing 27 are glued together so that the spout 25will move with the portion 19 (bending along rows 28, 29) and throughthe generally triangular opening in wal1^5 that is normally closed byportion 19. l,

Thevend of edge 30 adjacentto the upper end of row 28 yextends slightlyupwardly as at 35 (Fig. 3).to meet an yextensionof the line on, whichrow 28 is disposed, at point -36, and vthen edge 37 continues from saidpoint alongwa curved line that is substantially developed aboutthemeeting point of rows 28,1 29, but of progressively increasing radius asit approaches the end 38 ofthe outer way 26 that Vis remote from the row28. v,The lower edge 39 extends back to the lower ends fof rows 28, 29.The

position of the edge, 35 results in'sad edge cooperating with the edgeof the wallS at the upper end of edge 21 of` portion 19 to formanotchrin which the upper edge of the wing or portion 26 of the spout isheld during movement of -th e spout to and frompouring position.

' Thus wing l26 willfbe 1held ,against the edge of the opening providedin wall 5 when portion 19 is swung outwardly to prevent any likelihoodof lleakage of material past the outer side ofv` said wing. When therspout is` retracted intothe carton and the closure portions 19 Z7 againclose'the openingsl from which they were moved, the carton will beeffectively closed because of the overlapping of marginal portion 34over marginal portion 33, and the slight overlapping of the slots 28 vbythe marginal portion of part 19 along edge 21 ofthe latter.

The spoutwill resist complete withdrawal out of the .One ofthe highlyimportant features in this invention is the provision of slots 28, 29.Heretofore' one of the principal objections to spouts formed from thematerial of the cartons, or as cardboard inserts, has been the fact thatthespout' is,y accidentally torn or mutilated'the rst time it is useddue to the diculty of loosening or freeingit for withdrawal. For examplewere scores or creases employed instead of slots r28, '29,- the part 19would tend to be torn and to be separated from the portion 27, and thiswould also be the case if edge 21 were perforated instead of beingmerely tacked to the wall 5 at point or points 23. Y

Heretofore, and particularly where spout structures in cartons haveemployed folding creases or scores, or have relied upon bending thespout, as in U. S. Letters Patent to Ringler, No. 2,358,659of `September19, 1944, the spout must be locked in open position or it willautomaticallyrreturn to substantially closed position as soon as theforce that has pulled it out has been released. The provision of meansfor locking thespout in any positionusually results inrestricting-theposition of the spout to one pouring position only,.andfurthermore,.the locking means is usually inelective after one or twowithdrawals of the spout' due to wear and abrasion, and in otherinstances the resistance necessary to overcome the lockingiorce ineither lockingV or unlockingcthe spout is gated longitudinally of therows a greaterdistance than carton due to the increased radius of edge37 at the endv the spaces between slots and by having the end slots ofthe rows extend from substantially the meeting ends of the row to theedge 30, the .tension that is left in the material along said rows kisreduced (after bending along the rows) to the point where the bendingalong said rows is easily and readily accomplished, -alidthe spout willstay in substantially any degree of extension, instead of retractinginto the carton. Furthermore, `the material left between perforationswill not break, but will hold the parts 26, 27 together until `thecarton is empty, and longer if desired.

The width of the slots is important, as it should not be greater thanthe thickness of the material. As soon as the parts 26, 27 bend alongthe lineoftslots' 28 to the position shown in Fig. 5, the slots -areclosed, so rio-possible leak can occur. Slots 29 are, of course, coveredby the part 19 along crease 22.

In order to enable a person topull the spout of the carton to pouringposition without tearing the part 19 from the portion 25 of the spout,provision lis made for engaging the upper marginal portion k33 of thespout by the nail of a linger.

To accomplish this, the marginal: portion of the extension 14 above andalong edge 30 is formed with a pair of relatively short slits 45, 46'that extend generally perpendicularly relative to edge 30 and to theline of severance of the spout closure.

As seen in Figs. 3, 4, these slits preferably commence along edge 30 atpoints slightly outwardly of -but relatively close to the ends of recess24. Thus when the nail of the finger presses against the'portion 44ofextension 14 that is between slits 45, 46 and at apoint close to edge30, as is normally done in engaging the spout, the said portion 46 maybe bent inwardly into the carton sufciently to enable the nail of thelinger to engage Athe inner side of the margin 33 of said spout insteadof mere ly engaging the material portion 34 ofthe part 19. It shouldalso be noted that the positioning of *the slits 45, 46 oppositelyoutwardly of the ends of the recess 24 positions them behind the outerwall of the carton so that said slits are covered or sealed by saidouter wall.

If it were not for slits 45, `46, or their equivalent, the spout wouldnot be engaged by the nail, but instead, Vthe part 19 would be engaged.

In some instances, it is found .desirable to have the slits, designated47, 4S in Fig. 8, terminate just short of the edge 30, leaving theportion 49 lightly tacked to the extension 14 at points 50 by shortreadily breakable `sections, and in still other instances, it has Abeenfound desirable that slits, designated 60, 61 in Fig. 9, -extend to edge30, the same as in Fig. 5 but that additional spaced perforations orslits 62 be formed inthe extension 14 in continuation of the closed endsof slits 60, 61. These perforations or slits 62 are preferablyrelatively close together so that only a small force against the portion64 between slits 60, 61 is required to break the connections betweenthese slits.

The character of the material of the container and the size of thecontainer and spout structure will dictate which form is most suitable,although in most instances the form shown in Fig. 3 is satisfactory, oreven one slit will sutlice.

The gluing of the extension wall 14 to the side wall at the opposite endof the row that form the side walls of the carton is an operation thatheretofore required accuracy so great that seldom was the resultperfect.

In the present instance, upon printing the outer surface of the blankwith the data identifying the contents, the outer surface of the wing 26in the form shown in Figs. l to are also imprinted with the printers inkas indicated by the vertical line shading in Figs. 3, 8, 10, and the inkimprint may extend slightly across the free edges of the wings on to thematerial surrounding the wings and across the row of slots 28. This isclearly seen in Fig. 3. At the same time the portion of the wall 6 14that nes between slits 4s, 46 (Fig. 3) and are im# printed to the edgeof the wall 14.

In the structures of Figs. 3, 8, 9 and l0, this last imprinting of thewall 14 covers a greater area. than the recess 24 and extends to theedge 3i), but a slight space is'left between each of the slits 45, 46 orthe similar slits in Figs. 8, 9 and the imprinted area.

Where conventional printing ink or pigment bearing imprinting materialsuch as para red and others is used, we have found that the conventionalglue used in the manufacture of cartons will not stick to said ink orirnprinting material. Thus the application of glue to the outer surfaceof the extension 14 and over the imprinted portions will be veryaccurately restricted to the unprinted part and the spout portion 27will be glued to the closure part 19, but no portion that has theimprinting thereon Will stick to wall 5.

The slits 45, 46 and similar slits in Figs. 8, 9 Will be sealed byreason of the glue along opposite sides of said slits, but the amount ofglue deposited between the slits and the imprinted portion between themis so small that the seal is easily broken when pressure is appliedagainst the imprinted portion.

lt has also been found that any suitable penetrating agent in the ink,such as is in para red, will so irnpregnate the cardboard that glue willnot stick to either side nor to the edges of the slots 28, nor the edgesof the wing 26, thus insuring freedom of operation of the spoutheretofore not obtained and the glue applicator can apply glue to anyportion and to either side of glue ilap or extension 14 without makingthe spout inoperative.

While printers ink adapted to penetrate the cardboard is preferablebecause of the fact that the imprinting of the areas to be free fromglue can be done at the same time the printing operation is performedand With the same ink, it is obvious that any other suitable gluerepellant material capable `olf being similarly applied and meeting withthe requirement ot' the law may be employed and the term, glue repellantmaterial is intended to cover any such materials, and insofar as hasbeen found any penetrating imprinting material that docs not have anaffinity for glue when applied to cardboard lor to the ilexible materialfrom which the container is formed would be suitable.

As heretofore mentioned, it is not always necessary that two slits, suchas 45, 46 be used, inasmuch as substantially all of the area between theslits and extending from the free edge of the wall 14 to the edge 3th,is unsecured to the wall The two slits are preferable Where thecardboard is relatively heavy and stili, but satisfactory results can behad with the use of only one slit in lighter and softer board, and incertain instances fair results can be had without the use of the slits,but at least one should be used to facilitate obtaining proper access tothe spout.

In many instances it has been found that the wing 26 (Fig. 3) does notreadily free itself along its out edges from the remainder of the stockalong said edges. This circumstance is most prevalent where thecardboard is of medium and cheaper grades. While it is relatively simpleto form adequate slots Z8, 29 to facilitate bending of the spout wingsalong the lines of such slots, it is another thing to completely -freethe wings 26 from the remainder `of the stock, particularly in thecheaper stock. The bers remain uncut and bind the spout iiaps to theremainder,

The above objection is overcome by creasing the wing 26 along lines 90,91 (Figs. l, 3, 6 and 7 to l0). The crea-se extends across the wing 26from point 94 along edge 37 which is about where the edge 37 becomesprogressively farther from the point of intersection of rows 28, 29, tothe said latter point, or from a point along edge 39 close to saidintersection. The crease 91 extends across the Wing 26 along but spacedfrom edge 37, commencing at one end along row 28 near point 36 and,ending at a point along crease 90. These creases draw the portion of thewing between them and the outer edges of the wing away from the stocksurrounding the wing a sufficient distance to free the edges 37, 38, 39from the 4surrounding stock thereby enabling the wingto freely bendalong the line of slots 28 when the spout is drawn to pouring position.k l

In the large sized cartons where there is ample room, the stock ofextension 14 lmay be cut away as at 95 around the wing 26 from pointsspaced along edges 37, 39 from the point 36 and the intersection ofrow-s or" slots 28, 29 instead of using the creases to draw the materialof the wing away from the surrounding material o theV extension.

While the structure as shown and described is indicated in parts of thecarton that are integral uu'th the carton walls, it is obvious thatsimilar structure could beA used on inner and youter layers of sheetmaterial adapted to be secured to one of the carton walls over anopening in the latter of vsuitable size for swinging the spouttherethrough. The crease 9i) (Fig. 3) is straight and is positioned onthe wing 26 so that it will be aligned with and in yieldable engagementwith the adjacent edge of the opening in the outer wall when the spoutis pulled through such opening, thereby providing resistance to anytendency of the spout to spring back into the carton.

I claim:

1. A carton having an outside wall 4cut to provide a generallytriangular sector shaped iap formed with an acute lower angle and hingedalong one of its downwardly extending sides to swing outwardly t-oprovide an opening, said wall being cut awayadjacent the upper edge ofsaid liap to provide a nger opening, an inside wall `secured to andagainst the inner side of said outside wall relative to the inside ofsaid carton and having a continuous line `of severance forming a llatspout-forming closure `supported along a hinge line coincident with thehinge line of said flap for swinging through said first mentionedopening, said closure having a fold line substantially aligned with theother side of said acute angle dividing said closure into an outer andan inner wing, said inner wing being in lapping relation to said flapand secured thereto, said outer wing being in lapping relation to butfree from the part of said outside wall along said other vside of saidacute angle, said line of severance extending frorn said hinge line oversaid triangular ilap along and -spaced slightly below the upper edge ofsaid ilap that is vopposite to said lower angle and continuing aroundsaid outer wing for defining the edges thereof, said outer wing beingmovable through the opening delined by said triangular Hap with its sidethat is adjacent to said outside wall slidable against the edge of saidlast mentioned opening that is opposite to said hinge line, and a creaseextending across said outer wing coincident with said last mentionededge when said outer wing is moved through said last mentioned openingfor engagement with saidilast mentioned edge-to thereby releasably holdsaid spout'forming closure in pouring position extending through'saidlast mentionedopening. I

2. A carton having an outside wall cut to.. provide agenerallytriangular sector shaped apV formed with an acute lowerangleandhinged along one of its downwardly extending sides to swing outwardlyto provide an opening, an inside wallsecuredtoand against the inner sideof said outside wall relative to. the inside of said. carton and havinga contnuouslineof severaneeforming a flat spout forrning closuresupported alonga hinge line coincident with one side of said acute angleifor swinging through said opening, said closure havingI a ,foldA linesubstantially alignedlv withthe other side of vsaid acute angle dividingsaidA closure into an outer andi-an inner wing, said inner wing being inlapping relation, to saidap and secured thereto, said outer wing beinginlapping relation to but free from the part of said outside wall alongsaid other side of said" acute angle,said line of severance extendingfrom said hinge line over said triangular flapalong and spaced slightlybelow the upper edge of said flap that is opposite to said lower angleand continuing around said outer wing foi-,defining the edgesthereof,said outer wing being movable-,through said opening defined by saidtriangular tlap upon swinging said inner wing-through said opening aboutsaidhinge line, I.said outside wall only adjacent the upper edge ofsaid. ap being cut away to provide a finger. receiving recess, the loweredge of said recess being defined by,th efupper edge of said tiap, apair of slits formed-in said inside wall spaced outwardly from oppositesides ofr said recess` and extending vto saidline of severance with thepart of said inside wall between said slits extending across saidrecess, thereby freeing the material of vksaid insidejwall between saidslits and along said lineof severance for being` sprung inwardly underthe pressure of .a finger engaging the upper edge of said triangular ap,saidslitsbeing below and covered by said outside wall whereby saidoutside wall provides a seal extending across said slits. Y

. n efenc'es cited'in' the sie of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS1,539,985' t Allen June 2, 1925 1,907,939 Venningetral. May 9, 19331,973,960 'McLaughlin Sept, 18, 1934 '2,151,202 'Guyer Mar. 21, 19392,162,556 La Goord June 13, 1939 2,205,068 Potter JuneplS, 19402,332,205 Clarion Oct. 19, 1943 2,358,659 Ringles Sept. 19, 19442,509,289 Dunning f. May 20, 1950 2,576,595 ``Goldstein Nov. 27, 1951 n4 FOREIGN PATENTS .466,947 Great-.Britain June s, 1937

